Cuban-esque Spicy Pork Stew with Arroz con Gandules

(The finished dish)

It is yet another rainy, cold, dreary day in New Jersey today – the northeast is getting battered with yet more rainstorms.  I was craving some serious comfort food but something different, tasty and yet not full of the typical culinary badness that most serious comfort food has to make it comforting.

I did some research and found a few recipes for a Cuban style pork stew.  A typical "Guiso de Carne de Puerco"/ "Fricasse de Puerco" has as many variations as does any culture’s basic meat stew so I took a few elements from a number of recipes and came up with my own variation.

I like to serve it with Arroz con Gandules (which I know is a traditional Puerto Rican dish)

Time-saving tips:  I cook the dish in my electric skillet and make the rice in my rice cooker.

Cuban-esque Spicy Pork Stew with Arroz con Gandules

2 large pork tenderloins, cubed (about 3 lbs)

2 onions, sliced

3 bell peppers (I used red and yellow) chopped roughly

4 cloves of garlic, chopped

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed

3 cans (14.5 oz) of diced tomatoes with zesty jalapenos

1 jar of Goya Alcaparrado (a mixture of olives, capers and pimentos) drained

1 tablespoon of dried cumin

1 tablespoon of dried oregano

1 tablespoon of hot paprika

1 tablespoon or red pepper flakes

1 cup of red vermouth (or sherry)

1 cup of chicken stock, low sodium, fat-free

1 cup of beef stock, low sodium, fat-free

Zest of 1 cara orange (any orange is fine – cara is a type of navel orange)

Juice of 2 cara oranges (any orange is fine – cara is a type of navel orange)

Juice of 1 lime

1 bunch of fresh cilantro, chopped

3 tablespoons cornstarch

½ cup marsala or sherry

1.       Season pork liberally with salt and pepper.

2.      Brown quickly in a bit of olive oil until no longer pink – but not cooked through.  It should be quite raw.  Remove from pan and set aside.

3.       Add onions, peppers, garlic, sweet potatoes and sauté for a few minutes until fragrant.

4.      Add tomatoes, Alcaparrado, spices, vermouth and stock and bring to a simmer.

5.      Add the zest of one orange and the juice of one orange to the pan and cover.  Cook until sweet potatoes are almost cooked through about 10 minutes.

6.      Meanwhile, squeeze the juice of one lime and the juice of one orange over the pork and set aside.

7.      Once sweet potatoes are almost done, add pork to the pan and top with chopped cilantro.

8.      Simmer for about 20 minutes until the pork is cooked through.

9.      Serve as is over rice or thicken the sauce slightly if desired.

To thicken sauce, bring stew to a boil and add in 3 tablespoons of cornstarch mixed in some marsala or sherry.  Cook a few minutes until thickened and then serve with rice.

(Arroz con Gandules in the rice cooker)

GOYA Arroz con Gandules

I use my rice cooker for this and it works fine – but traditionally it is done on the stovetop.

If using a rice cooker – just put everything in the pot and turn it on – done!

Ingredients

1 tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

¼ lb. country ham, cubed (I omitted the ham when I made it with this dish)

½ red bell pepper, chopped (about ½ cup)

½ yellow onion, chopped (about ½ cup)

2 packets Sazón GOYA with Coriander and Annatto

1 tbsp. Minced Garlic

2 cups rice (I prefer and used Japanese short grain but medium grain is traditional)

1 can (15 oz.) GOYA Green Pigeon Peas

4 oz. GOYA Tomato Sauce

Directions

1.	Heat oil in a medium, heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Add ham to pan; cook until brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in peppers and onions; cook, stirring occasionally, scraping up brown bits from bottom, until vegetables are soft and translucent, 10 minutes. Add sazón, garlic, cilantro and oregano. Cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
2.	Add rice to pan. Cook, stirring frequently, until coated in oil and toasted, about 1 minute. Stir in pigeon peas, tomato sauce and 1½ cups water; using a wooden spoon, stir once and bring rice mixture to a boil. Cook, uncovered, until water is evaporated, about 10 minutes. Gently stir rice from bottom up.
3.	Lower heat to medium low and cook, covered, until rice is tender, about 15 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat. Gently fluff rice with fork. Cover pan and let stand 10 minutes.
Cooking Tip: The crust of rice that forms on the bottom of the pot is a delicacy referred to in Puerto Rico as pegao. Once the rice is served, the pegao is scraped out and distributed as a treat. To achieve the perfect crust – caramelized and crunchy, but not burnt –once the water has evaporated, scrape the bottom of pan with the wooden spoon, making sure to dislodge any stuck bits [Step 2]. This will prevent the rice from burning. Then, allow the rice to cook over medium-low heat, and refrain from shaking the pot or lifting the lid. This will ensure an even distribution of heat on the bottom of the pot, which, in turn, allows the perfect pegao to form.

Beannachtaí na Féile Pádraig oraibh!! St. Patrick's Day Blessing Upon You!!

It's pronounced: (ban-ock-tee na fay-lah paw-rig ur-iv), by the way...

In any case, Happy St. Patrick's Day!!  

While I do love corned beef and cabbage; it isn't the only great Irish dish out there, especially for St. Patrick's Day.  Tonight I am making a yummy Irish Stew with Guinness and Irish Brown Soda Bread.  Both super easy to make (and with my electric pressure cooker, ready in 45 minutes as opposed to 2 - 3 hours) and delicious.

First, get the stew going...this is a recipe from Killarney, County. Kerry, Ireland so it doesn't get any more authentic than this. 

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Irish Lamb Stew with Guinness

• 3 pounds lamb shoulder with a little fat, cubed
• 1/2 cup flour
• 3 large Russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 3 large carrots, peeled and sliced
• 6 stalks celery, cut into 1/2" slices
• 2 large yellow onions, cut into large dice
• 3 - 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 bunch fresh rosemary
• 1 bunch fresh thyme
• 1 bunch fresh parsley
• 2 quarts lamb or beef stock, or as needed
• 12 ounces Guinness stout
• 1 cup pearl barley (optional)
• 2 teaspoons corn starch
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For a real Irish country touch, include the barley -- cook it for 20 minutes in 3 cups of lamb or beef stock, then add when you return the meat to pot with the vegetables.

Cut off some of the parsley leaves and chop enough to make 2 tablespoons; reserve. 

Cut off some parsley stems, and tie them into a bundle with a few sprigs of rosemary and thyme; reserve.

Season the meat with salt and brown the meat in a little oil. Remove and reserve, and sprinkle with a little flour, shaking off excess. 

Add the onions, garlic, carrots and celery to the pan and sauté, tossing to coat with the fat. 

Add the Guinness and deglaze, scraping up any caramelized meat juices. 

Add the potatoes, return the meat to the pot (and the barley if you're using it). 

Add enough stock to barely cover, cook over medium heat until just boiling, then reduce heat to very low and simmer 2 - 3 hours, until the meat is tender, stirring occasionally.

Check seasonings, add salt and pepper to taste, then remove from heat, stir in parsley and the cornstarch (mixed into 4 teaspoons water) and stir. 

Cook over low heat for a few more minutes to thicken. 

Serve with plenty of Irish brown or white soda bread, tea and more Guinness if you like.

YIELD: 6 generous servings

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Once you have the stew simmering away, about an hour or an hour and fifteen minutes before you want to sit down to your delicious Irish Stew, mix and bake some Brown Irish Soda Bread.

This recipe is courtesy of Mrs. O' Callaghan at Ballinalacken Castle Country House and Restaurant.  Their bread is baked in a rectangular pan but I prefer to shape it by hand into a round and cut the cross into it as it is made traditionally....

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Mrs. O'Callaghan's Brown Irish Soda Bread 

Makes 1 loaf

by Mary O'Callaghan

March 2010

Ingredients

• Nonstick vegetable oil spray
• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 3 cups whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup (packed) brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) chilled margarine or butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (I prefer to use butter)
• 2 cups buttermilk

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 425°F. Spray heavy baking sheet with nonstick spray. Whisk both flours, sugar, and baking soda in medium bowl to blend. Add margarine (I prefer to use butter) and cut in until margarine is reduced to pea-size pieces. Add buttermilk; stir until shaggy dough forms. Turn dough out onto lightly floured work surface. Knead until dough comes together, about 10 turns. Shape dough into 9-inch round (the round should be about 1 inch high). Place dough on prepared baking sheet. Cut large X, 1/2 inch deep, in top of dough, almost all the way to the edges of the round.
• Bake bread in center of oven until deep brown and bottom sounds hollow when firmly tapped (a bamboo skewer inserted into the center of the bread should emerge clean without any stickiness or moistness), about 55-60 minutes. Transfer bread to rack and cool completely. 
  Serve with LOTS or fresh, soft Kerry Gold (if you can get it) butter!!!

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s maith an t-anlann an t-ocras. (Or, "hunger is a tasty sauce")

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

SWEET & SAVORY EASY QUICK BEER BATTER BREADS

It is no secret that I love to make bread - and that I love to EAT bread. Any size, shape, form or flavor. However, I don't always love the work and rise times of making yeast breads (especially with a mountain of homework I have to do for my M.Ed program!)

Anyway, as I watch the snow storm of the century coming down outside my window with some french onion soup simmering away; I thought that it would be delicious to have some fresh, hot bread - but I wasn't in the mood to proof yeast, mix, knead, wait for two risings, and all that today so I thought I would make one of my old standby recipes of beer batter bread. One is savory, a basic beer cheese brad that can be made with any number of beers and cheeses (although a lager is generally best). I made mine today with a Samuel Adams Winter Lager that we have in abundance in the drink fridge.

I am not a beer drinker, save for a Guinness now and then; so I have made beer cheese soup, beer sorbet and yes, beer bread with leftover beer we get for guests.

This is adapted from the recipe from November 2008 Cooking Light - they added 1/2 cup of sauteed onion with a bit of black pepper and garlic.

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SAVORY BASIC BEER CHEESE BREAD

Ingredients:

13.5 ounces all-purpose flour (about 3 cups)
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

1 cup (4 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese (or cheddar, pepper jack - whatever)
1 (12 ounce) bottle lager-style beer
1 tablespoon olive oil

Cooking spray

2 tablespoons melted butter, divided

1. Preheat over to 375 degrees.

2. Heat oil in a small skillet over medium-low heat. Add onion to pan; cook 10 minutes or until browned, stirring occasionally. Stir in pepper and garlic; cook 1 minute.

3. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk; make a well in the center of the bowl. Add onion mixture, cheese, and beer to flour mixture, stirring just until moist and mixed. Don’t over stir.

4. Spoon batter into a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan that has been coated with cooking spray. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of butter over the batter. Cook at 375 degrees for 35 minutes. Drizzle other tablespoon of butter over batter. Bake another 25 minutes or until the bread is a deep golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Cool five minutes in pan on a wire rack, then remove the bread from the pan.

Cool completely before slicing.

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Now, here is a great sweet-ish bread made with Guinness.

This is just about the easiest sweet bread I know; it takes precious little thought to make, tastes wonderful with sweet butter or cinnamon sugar, and, as an added bonus, this bread keeps for several days.

A few pointers on making this beer bread: The Guinness must be cold, the self-rising flour must be relatively fresh, and the loaf pan needs to be well-greased. If your self-rising flour is more than 6 months old, add a tablespoon of baking powder.

Can you sub in other beers and sweeteners? Sure. For a lighter beer bread, try using Harp and light brown sugar – it’ll still be Irish. I initially learned this recipe using Budweiser and white sugar, so your possibilities are endless. One caveat: Do not use hoppy beers such as a Pale Ale, as the bitterness will taste odd to you, unless, of course, you are into serious bitterness.

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GUINNESS BREAD WITH MOLASSES RECIPE

This is fantastic eaten fresh, and nearly as good the next day toasted with some more butter. Do not use stale beer for this recipe, you want the carbonation.
Ingredients

* 3 cups self-rising flour*
* 1/2 cup white sugar
* 1/3 cup molasses
* A pinch of salt (roughly 1/8 teaspoon)
* 12 ounces of Guinness beer
* Butter for greasing the pan and painting the top, about 3 tablespoons

* If you don't have self-rising flour, you can substitute using a ratio of 1 cup all-purpose flour, 1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder, plus 1/8 teaspoon of salt, for every cup of self-rising flour. Have made both ways though and got better results from the self-rising flour.


1 Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan well with butter.

2 Pour the flour, salt and sugar into a large bowl and whisk to combine.

3 Slowly pour the Guinness into the flour mixture. (The “pub cans” are larger than 12 ounces, but they have better carbonation, so I pour most of it out and leave a swig to drink. This has never failed me, but if you are a stickler, use a 12-ounce bottle of Guinness instead.) Start stirring the beer into the dry ingredients, and when you are about halfway done, add the molasses. Mix well, just to combine. Don’t work the heck out of the batter – because that’s what it’ll look like – but you don’t want lumps, either.

4 Pour into the loaf pan to no more than 2/3 full. Pop into the oven immediately and bake for 50 minutes. Since ovens can vary, check the bread after 40 minutes and see if a toothpick inserted into the deepest part of the loaf comes out clean. If it does, you’re done.

5 Let the loaf cool a bit, maybe 5 minutes, and then turn it out onto a rack. Paint it with lots of soft butter, which will melt as you go.


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Happy New Year!!

2:50 AM JST

Akemashite Omedetou Gozaimasu! My brother Jun and his wife Akemi just left with their sleepy dog Hina dressed in a hat and sweater for the 2 minute drive home from my mother’s house. 

Mama, Papa and I went to the local shrine together just after 12:00 AM to say our prayers.  It was not too cold but there were intermittent gusts of strong wind as we waited in the queue from the street and up the stone steps carved into the side of the mountain up to the shrine.  The shrine is a 2 minute walk from my mother’s front door so we were pretty much there and back home within a half hour.

I love going to the shrine on New Year’s – there was a beautiful full moon shining over us with a few dark rolling clouds and a sprinkling of stars.  Crisp, cold and really just the perfect setting for the New Year to begin.  After climbing the steps and getting to our turn in line, we offer a 100 yen coin in the coin box and then ring the bell before bowing and clapping our hands twice to say our prayers with bowed head. 

After that we move on to get either (or both) cold, clear, oaky daru (cask) sake and sweet, hot amazake as well as a sweet miso glazed skewer of konnyaku.  Across from the food and drink there is a raging bonfire that crackles and sends out beautiful fiery sparks dancing up through the air.  The small plaza is bustling with the local citizens, talking, laughing, drinking, eating and wishing each other blessings for the New Year as the  children play – and yes, text each other incessantly – while the adults socialize.

Mama and I chose to have the hot amazake and papa the daru sake.  Papa decided to go in sweatpants, a light jacket and no hat against Mama’s protests and as the one who is always catching a cold; he was already sniffling by the time we got home – the Gods clearly chiding his pride. 

Jun and Akemi decided not to go – Jun was fast asleep as much from our four hour eating and drinking binge as his hectic work schedule of the past week.  Kawaisou – poor devil just doesn’t get enough sleep!!  Akemi is Buddhist and generally only goes to the Oteara to say her prayers.  Mama’s family has always been Shinto and heavily involved in the religion so going to the shrines has always been paramount.

I love being in Japan for New Years and this is the first time Mama has had Jun and I together with her to share New Years Eve and New Years ever in her life so she is just delirious and beaming with happiness.

I love to see her smiling and happy – a priceless and indescribable feeling to put into words. 

We usually eat toshi-koshi soba or Year Ending noodles after returning from the shrine but everyone is so full tonight that we decided to have them in the morning at our leisure.

It is almost 2:00 AM JST so I am off to bed and am looking forward to writing out my nengajou – New Year’s cards – out over some hot green tea and undoubtedly another round of New Year food and sweets…

Day 1 in Japan

                                    

Japan 5:15 PM JST

I have been in Japan for about 24 hours and it is always amazing to me how no matter how much time passes between visits; that nothing seems to change in terms of how I feel when I am here.  It always feels as if I have always lived here and my life in the US is but a dream…and when I am in New Jersey, the reverse seems true.

In any case, I am happy to be home and with no work or homework to do – I am truly ‘anshin shiteimasu’ - which means at peace…

The trip here was fine and while I was worried about the heightened security imposed just the day before due to the crazy guy in Detroit, I really wasn’t affected by it in the US or in Japan.  I had to arrive at the airport an hour earlier – 3 hours instead of the usual 2 – but with my iPhone kindle app loaded up with 6 books; the time passed quickly as I sipped my Starbucks green tea latte and read through “His Majesty’s Dragon” by Naomi Novik.  I started the second book in the series at the end of my flight so I think I will get through the other two in the series during my time here and on the flight back.

My flight was scheduled to depart at 11:10 AM EST and all was going smoothly until we were just ready to take off.  Suddenly the captain informed us that there was a person who “decided that that they wanted off the plane”, and so we had to wait about 20 minutes for their luggage to be removed from the plane. 

We then were ready to take off again when the captain got back on the intercom and asked the entire plane for a doctor, nurse or EMT. When none identified themselves as such, the paramedics were called and so we waited some more.

We were then cleared a third time after the sick passenger was taken off the plane and the third time was the charm so we were off.

The flight was uneventful, very smooth and though I was pretty much stuck in my seat for the entire 13.5 hour flight, save for one trip to the bathroom; it was fine.  My seat mates were Chinese and very quiet but they ended up sleeping for the majority of the flight, rousing only to eat and then going back into hibernation.  I may switch to an aisle seat for the return flight...

The airplane seat backs were all fitted with a touch screen entertainment system with movies, television shows, music and flight status.  There was a huge selection of global international entertainment so I was able to watch “Departures” (okuribito in Japanese) a Japanese movie that won the 2009 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language film.  It was a beautiful movie and yes, I bawled my eyes out in parts LOL.

Depatures website: http://www.departures-themovie.com/

I then watched the Bollywood film “Fashion” by Madhur Bhandarkar and starring Priyanka Chopra who is just stunningly gorgeous.

Fashion movie trailer:   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1o74teot9w

The flight landed about 40 minutes late and then I pretty much zipped through debarkation – once I had my luggage, I just showed the customs official my passport and told him I was visiting my mother and family and he just waved me through immediately without checking a single bag.  John gave me a Cuban cigar for Papa and I wasn’t sure if it would be an issue (Cuban cigars aren’t illegal in Japan) and luckily it wasn’t.

Mama and Papa were waiting for me at the gate and I had been texting my brother (at work) on his cell as soon as I landed – the iPhone is indeed global and found the local carrier DoCoMo & SoftBank as soon as I switched off the airplane mode after we landed. The fact that I can text in both Japanese and English at will is awesome – I love, love,love the iPhone!

We grabbed a bite at a Soba Noodle shop on the 4^th floor at Narita Airport and I had delicious tsukimi soba (moon viewing soba) noodles served cold and warm hijiki seaweed rice with hot mugs of mugi-cha (barley tea).  Truly delicious!

 (Tsukimi soba - Moon viewing soba)

There was a African-American Navy guy who came in after us and sat next to us with his wife (or girlfriend) who had just arrived for a visit – her first to Japan, and she didn’t seem too happy about it.

She ordered blindly and was served soba noodles with a dipping sauce and a mug of soup broth to sip – my mother ended up showing her how to eat the noodles since she had no idea what to do with the fresh knob of wasabi next to her noodles nor the dipping sauce or sipping soup.  She seemed happier to be eating the noodles once they had some flavor.

After dinner, I changed my currency over to yen and we were off to the house.  I slept the entire way and when I woke up we were home.

Ake-chan (my brother’s wife) and her mother (who I call Ake-Mama) stopped for a visit about an hour after my arrival and I was able to give them the gifts I brought which seemed to go over very well. 

My brother called after they left and apologized for not stopping but he had just gotten home from work and it was about 11:00 PM JST so I told him I would see him whenever he was able to stop by – he has such a difficult schedule, I really feel for him and would rather he got a good night’s sleep.  He is off for New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day so we will have plenty of time to catch up and spend time together.  Besides – he and Ake-chan are taking me to Kyoto for three days next week.

I slept well and spent today just being home and going for a couple short walks.  Mama made a great breakfast as usual – hot rice, hot clear broth with seaweed and sesame, ginger chicken, mentaiko (cod roe), sautéed lotus root, mapo tofu with pork, spicy sautéed perilla leaves, umeboshi and her delicious nukazuke pickles of fresh turnip and cucumber. 

Ake-chan and Ake-Mama stopped by for coffee shortly after breakfast and during their visit I showed them Skype – we called Ed and also Ed’s mother, Mom H.; which my mother was over the moon about.  She and Papa were so, so happy to see and talk to Mom H. that their faces were just beaming.  They both adore Mom H. and the feeling is certainly returned in kind.  Mom often says they lived closer together and I have no doubt that if they lived close, that the moms would be fast friends – they seem to share so many similar thoughts about life and family.  I am truly very blessed and happy to have both wonderful women in my life.

After we called Mom H., Ake and Ake-Mama left and then we called Darline and Peet in Anguilla.  Danny and Aubry were there as well so Mama was able to see and talk to her oldest grandson and then meet his girlfriend Aubry for the first time.  She was (and still is) beaming with happiness.  It is so good to see her laughing and smiling all day.  Skype is as magical a thing to her as the iPhone.

(Sakakuraya)

I remembered this area with no problems and went to the book store where I bought two great cookbooks on wagashi or Japanese sweets. I stopped by the liquor store and bought my brother a nice bottle of Kageshima Imo Shochu (similar to potato vodka), then the tea shop where I picked up some roasted mugi-cha (barley tea) and then finally went to my favorite wagashi-ya or Japanese Sweet store called Sakakura-ya and bought some yummy daifuku mame and kuri yokan.

(daifuku mame)

My brother is stopping by in a couple of hours so I will get to see him today – for now, KBS is broadcasting a Korean Epic movie set in the same timeframe as Japan’s Samurai feudal era.

Papa  and Mama both love these movies – as do I – so off to watch the show!!

Qurban (Lebanese Holy Bread)

Merry Christmas!

This entry in my blog is by Mercedes a fellow eblogger from Washington DC who has a passion for cooking/baking and a love of the Middle East.  Her Blog is called Desert Candy. (http://desertcandy.blogspot.com/2007/12/qurban-lebanese-holy-bread.html)

Mercedes' recipe for "Qurban" from Damascus' Old Orthodox Christian quarter of the city called 'Bab Touma':

Several afternoons a week I rush out of work, heading across town for my Arabic tutoring session, which is really just an excuse for Wael and me to gab about the ongoing saga of his engagement and other such gossip. I tap my fingers on the window of the service, the van stuck in the smog-filled traffic of Damascus' rush hour. Finally reaching Bab Touma, I leap out and hustle into the winding alleys of the old city. Bab Touma is the Christian quarter of the old city and right at the entrance, between the chicken vendor and the kunafe maker, is a small bakery selling small twisted cookie rings and puffy round breads and sesame breadsticks. When my stomach grumbles I stop quickly, paying a few coins for one of those soft breads, pressing it to my nose to inhale its orange water scent before hurrying on my way.

The bread is called qurban, which means sacrifice, and it is the bread used during communion for the Orthodox Christian churches of Syria and Lebanon. But don't worry, my afternoon snack isn't sacrilegious, qurban are often for sale for public consumption. You can literally smell this bread baking from blocks away, the scent of orange flower water and yeast hooking your nose like a ring though a cow's nostril. They are best when your nose draws you to them, fresh out of the oven, the sweet rounds marked in the center with a stamp in Aramaic, soft and lightly sweet.

I had forgotten about qurban until I picked up a copy of Annisa Helou's Savory Baking from the Mediterranean (I am a Ms. Helou groupy and all her books are fabulous, including this latest one). Ms. Helou, who is Lebanese Christian, describes rediscovering qurban years later as her "madeleine moment," and I can understand why. Since the first time I made them at home they've been in high demand, and I have no objection because I love the way it makes the house smell. Plus, I've had plenty of practice to tweak and streamline the recipe to be more in line with my memory. These are perfect breakfast breads, toasted and spread with sweet butter, or they make a great sweet-savory sandwich with some salty halloumi cheese. And you need not be religious nor observant to enjoy them, though if you have a cup of wine alongside you could pretend you were.

Qurban (Lebanese Holy Bread)

These wonderfully scented breads are best served warm from the oven or lightly toasted with sweet butter.

1 package (2 1/2 tsp) active dry yeast
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp mahlep, if available
2 tbl unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tbl orange blossom water
for brushing: 2 tbl butter melted with 1 tsp orange blossom water

1. Place the yeast in a small with 1 teaspoon of the sugar. Add 1/3 of a cup of warm water and set aside for 5-10 minutes, until bubbly.

2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl combine the flour, remaining sugar, salt, and mahlep. Add the butter and rub it into the flour mixture with your finger tips until well distributed. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture, add the yeast mixture and add 1/2 cup warm water. Knead until you have a rough ball of dough.

3. Knead the dough in the bowl for 3-5 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Rub the inside of the bow with oil to coat, place the dough bal inside. Cover with a kitchen towel and leave to rise until doubled in volume, about 1 1/2 hours.

4. Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces and shape each piece into a ball. Let rest 10 minutes. On a lightly floured surafce, roll each dough ball out into a circe about 6 inches in diameter. Place on a greased or lined baking sheet, cover with a kitchen towel and let rise one hour. Preheat oven to 400 F.

5. Press each dough round with the tines of a fork to make a square in the center. Make sure to press deeply as this will prevent the dough from puffing too much in the oven. Place in the oven and bake 15-17 minutes, until golden. Meanwhile, prepare the glaze. When the bread comes out of the oven brush generously with the butter-flower water mixture. Let cool slightly before serving. 

Countdown to Christmas!!!